Defining a History Essay
There is a well-held adage that the present shapes the future. This implies that things that are currently happening have an impact on other events or occurrences that take place in the future.
As such, a paper exploring a past event is not a simple compilation of facts. It reconstructs events in such a way that they make sense in the present.
For most students, the past is a simple depiction of things that happened. In as much as they may be of great significance, writing or even thinking about them from an academic point of view is too taxing. For most of them, the question is, “If I was not there, then why should I be knowledgeable of all mundane details of a past event?” Unfortunately, tutors, instructors, and even professors expect students to write exhaustively giving every detail of past events and their significance. It is thus important to know what this form of writing entails.
A history essay is a prose composition on a topic related to a past event that has significance in the present.
In this case, writing a history essay focuses on various topics related to:
- The various World Wars.
- The fight for civil rights.
- Countries obtaining independence.
- The spread of various religions.
- Slavery, its causes and impact.
- The migration of various communities.
The topics are not limited to the above. They also take various forms including arguments, explorations, descriptions, reflections, analytics and cause and effect.
Considering that one is writing about an event that took place several decades or years ago, it is imperative to include well-cited references. Thus, most papers contain one or more references that may be cited in MLA or APA.
How to Write a History Research Paper?
While most writings are characterized with brevity, sometimes students or professionals provide an exhaustive look into a particular past event and its significance. Normally, a prose composition that exhausts several ideas on a certain event is designated as a history research paper.
